Surviving High School

Why Can't I?

A/N: Alright folks, here's chapter 18. Hard to believe that we're that far along.  There's a total of 30 chapters, so we're slowly getting there.   I will say this . . . we will be drama free for a bit after this. Hell, we might even get fluffy.  As always, big thanks for reading and reviewing.

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My heart dropped when Charlie told me that we needed to have a talk. I knew that it had something to do with what had happened to Mrs. Cullen. I didn't want to think about it, much less talk about it.

"Sit down, Bells," Charlie said gently.

I sat down in his recliner, across from him and Sue, staring at both of them with dread. Charlie's right hand was clasped in Sue's left one. I could feel the tension rolling off both of them.

"Well . . . I've got some good news and bad news. First, we caught the woman who hit Esme Cullen . . . " he began.

"Oh, God. It was Renee, wasn't it?" I asked, horror crossing my face.

"No. No, it wasn't her," he reassured me.

I felt the panic that had been surfacing begin to subside. As much as I couldn't stand Renee, I was extremely grateful that she hadn't been the one to cause Mrs. Cullen pain.

"So, who was it, then?"

"Mrs. Cheney, Ben's mother," he said quietly.

What? I sat there in stunned silence. Oh, no! I knew that Ben's mom had been having a hard time dealing with the divorce from eight months ago.

"Does Ben know?" I asked him.

He nodded. "Yes. I talked to him earlier. He's devastated. He knew his mom was upset about the divorce but didn't realize that she was turning to alcohol to get by."

"What's going to happen to Ben?"

"His dad is coming up from Port Angeles. They have some things to work through. Bella, he's going to need you to be there for him. This is going to take a major toll on him and people are going to talk and say hurtful things."

I nodded. Life in a small town could sure suck sometimes. "Of course, I'll be there for him. He's my best friend."

I sat there, taking it all in. Poor Ben! I didn't know what was going to happen to him. More than likely, his mom would end up doing time, which meant that he'd probably end up moving to Port Angeles to live with his dad. I'd give him a call when my conversation with Charlie and Sue was over.

"So, okay then. Bad news is out of the way," he said, and I saw him give Sue's hand a squeeze. "I've also got some good news. Well, we have some good news," he said, smiling at Sue.

"And this good news would be--?"

Sue and Charlie looked at each other and then Sue held out her left hand. There, on her finger, was a simple diamond ring.